Beet salad makes for a wonderful summer appetizer. Our family also enjoys these beets as a side dish to accompany our baked lamb on Easter Sunday. It’s simple to make and adds a wonderful pop of color to the table. Be sure to use fresh beets. While using precooked beets will significantly cut down on the preparation time, they won’t yield the same vibrant pink color. You can also opt to serve these beets as a dip. Simply prepare the salad in a blender and blend until smooth. Ingredients Preparation
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Continue ReadingBaked feta with honey and sesame is a Greek appetizer or “mezze” that perfectly combines the flavors of savory feta, buttery phyllo, sweet honey, and crunchy sesame seeds. If you want to add a little extra flair to your presentation, use black and white sesame seeds. You can also serve with honey on the side for each person to drizzle over top. These baked feta with honey and sesame bites make for the perfect finger food, something to consider when you’re planning your next party! These can be served hot out of the oven or at room temperature. Ingredients Preparation
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Continue ReadingHomemade hummus dip is sometimes mistaken for a Greek dish, when its roots are found in Arabic cuisine, with the word “hummus” meaning “chickpeas” in the Arabic language. This confusion is understandable with so many restaurants describing their cuisine as Mediterranean, which encompasses traditional foods from multiple countries that border the western Mediterranean. While hummus isn’t indigenous to Greece, it is a wonderful dish. Having recently attended a gathering at Yafo Kitchen with the Charlotte Food Bloggers, where we learned to make a delicious homemade hummus dip, I simply had to share the recipe! Ingredients 12 ounces dry chickpeas 1 tablespoon baking soda 1/4…
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Continue ReadingSpicy feta dip is one of our standing orders when we visit a Greek taverna. It consists mainly of feta cheese and red chili peppers and there are a multitude of ways to prepare this recipe. Part of the fun is tasting each taverna’s interpretation. From using different types of chilis, to incorporating small pieces of diced cucumber and bell pepper, the opportunities to be creative with this dip seem endless. The key is to use your favorite feta and just enough chilis such that the heat is noticeable but not unpleasantly hot. Served with bread or pitas, this dip is…
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Continue ReadingTzatziki is synonymous with Greek cooking and has a broad appeal as evidenced by the numerous brands of tzatziki dips available at grocery stores. While this tasty dip is a Greek cuisine staple, contrary to popular belief, we only eat it occasionally in our home. This may be due to the fact that real tzatziki, unlike the popularized store bought version, is loaded with raw garlic. For this recipe, I have reduced the garlic to a small amount and made it optional. As easy as it is to pick up a tub of tzatziki from the store, give this homemade recipe a…
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Continue ReadingThis particular recipe is one recreated from a meal we enjoyed last summer at a seaside restaurant in Porto Cheli. The pimento, parsley, and red onion add wonderful color and flavor to the salad. Served at room temperature or chilled, the salad is light, refreshing, and a wonderful way to enjoy the all too often underappreciated eggplant. Ingredients 10 ounces eggplant (about 2 large or 5 small) 1 teaspoon finely chopped flat parsley 2 1/4 teaspoons minced red onion 3 teaspoons finely chopped pimento 1 clove minced garlic 2 teaspoons wine vinegar 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil Salt to taste…
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Continue ReadingPickled octopus is a true delicacy of Mediterranean cuisine. As exotic as this ingredient may seem, it is surprisingly easy to prepare. The greater challenge lies in finding an octopus of the proper size. Those sold in traditional grocery stores, if available at all, are often on the smaller side with tentacles that are too thin for this recipe. Larger octopi, weighing approximately 4 pounds, are most easily found in specialty seafood shops and international markets. Served cold, this dish is particularly popular as an evening appetizer in the summer. And if you’re feeling adventurous, you can even give the…
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Continue ReadingThese refrigerator pickled peppers have a hint of garlic which makes them addictive. They are traditionally made with Florina peppers, which are grown in Northern Greece. However, you won’t find fresh Florina peppers in the United States. Instead, you can use regular bell peppers or red Cubanelle peppers, which have a thiner flesh than traditional bell peppers. This recipe for refrigerator pickled peppers shows you how to roast and pickle fresh peppers. A time saving tip is to buy jared roasted peppers, in which case you can skip straight to the pickling process. Enjoy these pickled peppers as an appetizer or cut up in salads.…
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Continue ReadingGreek feta cheese pie, otherwise known as “tiropita” in Greek, is delicious and relatively easy to make. The savory and tangy filled baked phyllo makes these hand held baked goods perfect as an appetizer or for a quick snack. Serve your Greek cheese pie hot out of the oven, at room temperature, or right out of the refrigerator for a cool treat on a hot summer day. Ingredients 8oz roll room temperature phyllo dough 4 eggs 6 ounces Greek yogurt 11 ounces feta cheese 1/4 cup milk 6 tablespoons butter Preparation Melt 6 tablespoons of butter and set aside In…
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Continue ReadingSpanakopita is one of the most popular Greek foods. The flaky phyllo dough combined with the savory spinach and feta filling – what’s not the love?! There are many good spanakopita brands available at grocery stores but in my book, nothing beats the homemade kind. If you make them at home, you can determine the ratios of each ingredient. You can go heavier or lighter on the dill, add extra onion, or even mix things up with two different kinds of cheeses. Our family recipe uses extra virgin olive oil instead of butter for the phyllo. If you prefer to…